Getting Started in Track Days

Hello all - I'm brand new to the forum.

So I'm currently trying to dip my toe in track days (HPDE/Autocross) this upcoming summer but have absolutely no experience. So the first question is - what car to buy to get started.

For a little background my ultimate goal is to build a Factory Five Cobra in the next few years so my current car would be more of a trainer until that gets built. As such, budget is key.

I'm currently looking at the following and trying to keep costs as low as possible, any suggestions?

- Boxster S

- 944 NA

- BMW 3 series

I'm leaning toward the 944 because I could always build that into a spec car in the future and would be the lowest cost to entry. The Boxster seems like it would be more fun out of the box though.

What do you own currently?  Where do you live?  

1 ) You will never "win" at track days.  Its all about having fun and learning how to drive quickly on course.  Focus on making the driver fast, then worry about the fast car.

2) a 944 is a great starter due to how naturally balanced they are, they tend to be very easy and pleasant towards their drivers.  The 3-series is a close second (plus the parts are cheaper due to supply and demand), its just not as pretty.  There are spec series for the 3-series now in some regions, worth looking into.

3) None of those will help train you for a FFV, but the 944 or 3-series with an LS swap would be close.

4) The Boxster would be a lot of fun, but a bit spendy in consumables, but compared to bringing the 70's era chassis of the 944 to best it?  That could be a bit of a push.

Have you looked into Karting?  A great way to get seat time in vehicles with higher power/weight ratios with less overall costs in comparison (depending on the Kart, class and how often you run).

I am also interested in this...  I'm not a convertible guy and therefore have not shined to boxster's or Miata's, but miata seems like the ultimate low cost machine here.  Low cost consumables is my #1 goal.  

In reply to xflowgolf :

Nothing trackable unfortunately - an automatic Lincoln MKZ.

Living in Pewaukee area of Wisconsin (west of Milwaukee).

If you are already planning to hop into another car down the line, right now you just want to be out there learning and having fun for the lowest entry cost possible and it is hard to go wrong with something like a 944 or 3-series in that regard. Tin top means you don't have to invest in supplemental roll protection or other convertible-specific safety requirements before you hit the track. Boxsters are cool but have some reliability issues, HPDE-compliant rollbars are $$$$, and since you are planning on a powerful front engine/rear drive car in the future I would start with that layout.

I started HPDE in a basically stock E46 3-series; just make sure the car is 100% on maintenance, then invest in some summer tires, a full DOT4 brake fluid flush, and track-appropriate brakes and you will be ready to go car-wise. Not a bad idea to buy your own helmet too if you want to avoid using the smelly loaners.

I live in Milwaukee and have run a handful of events in the area, who are you planning to run with?

In reply to Stefan :

Winning is definitely not an initial goal, I was just hoping to get something that would allow me to get some good track time and learn basics (while having a good time of course). Also something that will allow me to "expand-upon" as time goes on if possible. 

A direct connection to the FF isn't necessary a requirement - The Cobra is just something I've always wanted to build so I'm trying to save as much money as possible to get that started. It's more of a reason to keep things cheap at this stage than anything else.

I have to admit I haven't really looked into Karting - perhaps that is something I'll need to look into as well as this search continues.

If you are getting started, Just find a car you like. Remember you will probably only do 3-5 track days a year so you'd want something that for some of the other 355 days a year you'd want to drive or can afford to just let sit. Don't discount 350Z, Mustangs, BMW, The Twins, etc. 

From there, handle the basic maintenance to make it track worthy. Fresh brake pads/fluid, tight suspension, Roll-over protection for convertibles, and good tires. 

Take to the track and enjoy! Listen to the instructors. Don't think you are the next Mario or Lewis in your time out. Meet some good people. 

As your skills increase, then you will see what the next thing you need to do with the car. 

pointofdeparture said:

If you are already planning to hop into another car down the line, right now you just want to be out there learning and having fun for the lowest entry cost possible and it is hard to go wrong with something like a 944 or 3-series in that regard. Tin top means you don't have to invest in supplemental roll protection or other convertible-specific safety requirements before you hit the track. Boxsters are cool but have some reliability issues, HPDE-compliant rollbars are $$$$, and since you are planning on a powerful front engine/rear drive car in the future I would start with that layout.

I started HPDE in a basically stock E46 3-series; just make sure the car is 100% on maintenance, then invest in some summer tires, a full DOT4 brake fluid flush, and track-appropriate brakes and you will be ready to go car-wise. Not a bad idea to buy your own helmet too if you want to avoid using the smelly loaners.

I live in Milwaukee and have run a handful of events in the area, who are you planning to run with?

Thanks for the pointers, I'll keep that in mind. Seems like a 944 or 3 series may be just what the doctor ordered.

You actually hit my next question right on the head. I've looked generally into NASA, SCCA and Northwoods Shelby Club but am still trying to figure out the best way to get started. Any advice?

Welcome! I live by Miller Park, which is where the Milwaukee SCCA hosts their Autocross events. They also do HPDE and Track Days at the Milwaukee Mile, so luckily you don't have far to travel.

If you're a Facebook user, you can join the Milwaukee SCCA group, and Track Midwest group on there. Lots of friendly faces and plenty of good, local help. You can even find cars for sale. The Milwaukee Region has one of the best Autocross programs in the country, so you are in luck. We are good people.

I won't be much help as to "what car should I get", but I will tell you that your first step would be coming out to an event and checking it out. You can even autocross that Lincoln (you might be pleasantly surprised) until you find something else. What got you interested? Do you know other people who HPDE/Autocross?

Wanted to add: Civics can be had relatively cheap, and their consumables and other parts are also very cheap. If you really want to save money for that Cobra while getting your toes moist, you can't go wrong with a basically stock Civic running in Street class. Locally, Miatas are either rusty, wrecked/used up, or expensive.

An Acura TL w/ 6 speed manual as a great all-arounder.  

Nice enough that you can drive it to work and with your kids but cheap enough that you can "leave it at the track".

In reply to BrewCity20 :

http://www.milwaukeetrackdays.com/

https://lapstrackdays.com/

https://www.mcscc.org/

The Milwaukee Track Days at the Mile are a great way to get your feet wet, as are any events that pop up at Blackhawk or Autobahn. You can actually hang in pretty well with a slower car there; I started with Laps at Road America which was phenomenal but somewhat more intimidating, some extremely fast cars run with them and RA is a fast track, I would not want to bring anything slower than the E46 330 I was driving there.

There are also some PCA/other marque club-type events with frequency but I don't follow those very well.

944's are great cars but remember that they're old.  Any one you find is going to require a decent amount of work right out of the gate to get it track ready/dependable.

BrewCity20 said:

Nothing trackable unfortunately - an automatic Lincoln MKZ.

You can do a track day in almost anything, as long as it's safe.  Take your Lincoln the first time and see if you like the experience, before shelling out money for a whole other car.

You know, your MKZ would do just fine for track days.  Especially for your Novice entries.

Just because its an automatic doesn't mean it can't be driven hard.

Change the brake fluid, bump up the tire pressures and go rag on it a bit.

We had someone bring a Smart to a track day and he did quite well with it.

+1, use the Lincoln for a weekend or two. It's basically a Fusion anyway, they drive/handle well.

John Welsh said:

An Acura TL w/ 6 speed manual as a great all-arounder.  

Nice enough that you can drive it to work and with your kids but cheap enough that you can "leave it at the track".

I want soooo bad and it’s close but my car collection is getting out of hand.

What will be the donor for the Factory Five “Cobra”?

Whatever it is, buy that car as a driver now, learn all you can in it then when you’re ready, you’ve got your donor right there!

I'd take the MKZ or rent a car. Either a track ready car or a normal rental. There are track car arrive & drive deals that may look expensive at first glance but when you look at the big picture doing it a couple times a year vs buying a vehicle and all the associated time & money for the car the track rental package may be the right thing for you. As far as regular rental cars, I took a 4 dr auto Cobalt airport rental car to Road Atlanta for an HPDE weekend with NASA one time I couldn't get my own car ready in time. Had a blast with it and was not the slowest car out on track, talk about a momentum car!

I like the idea of buying the donor car for your FF build also. Use it and then part it out if you've really got the itch to build a car. Just remember it takes dedication & persistence to finish it.

I talked to a guy today who has a 2000 Mustang he was running in American Iron until a couple years ago. Due to medical stuff he's selling everything. Tow vehicle and 44' trailer, Mustang, supplies, tools etc.  You can buy a track car from a guy like him for less than 1/2 what it'll cost ya to build with the bonus of being able to just go without spending years in the garage first. Might be an option down the road instead of building a car.

I can tell you from my own experiences I couldn't afford the money AND time to build a car while simultaneously going to track days with a different car. I had to stop going to the track to put the time and money into the build project. Haven't been back on track since.

Another option would be to look for an inexpensive used race car for track days. It could be more expensive initially than a 944 or the like, but will save on costs down the road by already having upgraded suspension, cooling, brakes, etc. Plus it could be easier to sell later on than some half converted street/track car, or you could just take that racing.

I'd encourage you to come out to Miller park for an autox.  Many of the people there run track days as well.  Milwaukee region is a great bunch.  Anyone and everyone is typically helpful and more than willing to answer questions.  Also check out the beginning of the year scca Milwaukee meeting.  Should be a date for it in the scca Milwaukee website.  If you show up to autox and see a dented red neon with to wide of tires in the front stop by and say hi.

I also live in Milwaukee and have been tracking here for a few years. The Milwaukee scca does nice events at the Milwaukee Mile which is a fairly technical track. Fairly friendly group, not too competitive, not a lot of super fast exotic hardware.  I would say plan to come out to a few of their events this year, maybe even go to something early in the season and get some ride-alongs to try to get an idea of what you like. There is an instructor Lee who has a basically stock Mustang GT that he drives the tires off, and another guy who instructs with a basically stock Boxster s that is also pretty impressive.  in my experience these guys are thrilled to have new people getting into the hobby and happy to give ride-alongs.

Regarding car choice, something with a roof is definitely nice, there are a fair amount of foul weather track events around here and having the safety factor is nice although there's no substitute for a cage when you're really starting to push it.  3 series is a nice choice because they tend to have really solid balance and control feel, a good car to learn fundamentals in, pretty slow compared to most modern sports cars but that's probably a good thing. The annoying thing is that the suspension and cooling systems fall apart, but if you could pick one up that had been enthusiast owned and had that stuff gone over could be a good near stock car to take out there.  Boxster I think you are playing with fire a little bit in that if you take out the motor that is an expensive problem.  There's also the issue of driving a convertible without roll over protection. I did this with my S2000 with the local scca group, but it is not the safest thing obviously. I probably wouldn't do it again.

In reply to ebonyandivory :

I was planning on doing a complete kit build so there would be no donor car. That is a good point though and maybe I should look into that again. 

NOT A TA said:

I'd take the MKZ or rent a car. Either a track ready car or a normal rental. There are track car arrive & drive deals that may look expensive at first glance but when you look at the big picture doing it a couple times a year vs buying a vehicle and all the associated time & money for the car the track rental package may be the right thing for you. As far as regular rental cars, I took a 4 dr auto Cobalt airport rental car to Road Atlanta for an HPDE weekend with NASA one time I couldn't get my own car ready in time. Had a blast with it and was not the slowest car out on track, talk about a momentum car!

I like the idea of buying the donor car for your FF build also. Use it and then part it out if you've really got the itch to build a car. Just remember it takes dedication & persistence to finish it.

I talked to a guy today who has a 2000 Mustang he was running in American Iron until a couple years ago. Due to medical stuff he's selling everything. Tow vehicle and 44' trailer, Mustang, supplies, tools etc.  You can buy a track car from a guy like him for less than 1/2 what it'll cost ya to build with the bonus of being able to just go without spending years in the garage first. Might be an option down the road instead of building a car.

I can tell you from my own experiences I couldn't afford the money AND time to build a car while simultaneously going to track days with a different car. I had to stop going to the track to put the time and money into the build project. Haven't been back on track since.

Interesting thought on the rental. Any ideas what companies may be available in the Milwaukee area? 

In reply to turtl631 :

Thanks for the tips. I'm definitely planning on making a trip out to the AutoX and track days once they start back up this summer.